1. Field of Invention
The present invention generally relates to processes and apparatuses that can convert waste materials, such as the rubber from scrap tires, discarded carpeting and used milk, water or soda bottles, into a high-purity, high-efficiency, high-energy, environmentally clean superheated steam product or dry saturated steam product in an efficient, cost-effective manner, while also beneficially extending the lifespans of landfills in which the waste materials would likely otherwise have been placed.
Using an oxidizer other than air, the processes and apparatuses of the present invention convert chemical energy that is present in a fuel containing the element hydrogen, the element carbon or the elements hydrogen and carbon, which may be derived from waste materials, into thermal energy, which is transferred to surrounding water, converting the water into a superheated steam product or dry saturated steam product that can be used to produce electrical power, or in other manufacturing and/or non-manufacturing processes. A separate, environmentally clean, hot combustion gas exhaust product is also produced by the processes and apparatuses of the invention, which can be released into the atmosphere, or can be employed in other processes, for example, in the production of an additional (separate) steam product that can be used in the same or a different manner.
The superheated steam product or dry saturated steam product produced by the processes and apparatuses of the invention generally does not contain any environmental pollutants or hazardous materials. Further, the other major product generally produced by the processes and apparatuses of the invention, which is a separate combustion gas exhaust product, generally contains no environmental pollutants and/or hazardous materials, or contains reduced levels of environmental pollutants and/or hazardous materials in comparison with combustion processes and apparatuses that employ air in, or otherwise allow air to enter into, their systems, including conventional and most other methods and apparatuses for producing steam and/or electrical power, such as conventional coal-burning steam or power plants, natural gas-burning steam or power plants, nuclear power plants, boilers, furnaces and turbines. Additionally, the quantities of various environmental pollutants and/or hazardous materials that may be present in a combustion gas exhaust product produced by the processes and/or apparatuses of the invention are generally further reduced when one or more of the fuels of the present invention are employed in these processes and apparatuses. Thus, the fuels, processes and apparatuses of the invention are capable of producing steam and/or electrical power without generating unacceptable environmental pollution and/or hazardous materials, thus providing a cleaner and safer environment.
The superheated steam product or dry saturated steam product generated by the processes and apparatuses of the invention can be used to produce electrical power for a wide variety of power uses by, for example, driving, rotating or otherwise turning high pressure (or other) steam turbines, generators, engines, pistons and/or other energy extracting and/or electricity generating equipment in electrical power or other plants.
Additionally, the separate hot combustion gas exhaust product that exits the apparatuses of the invention can, via the use of heat transfer, be used to produce a separate steam product that may contain varying weight percents of different types of steam, such as superheated steam, dry saturated steam and/or wet steam. If more than one type of steam is present in this steam product, the different types of steam can be separated using conventional steam separating equipment. Any superheated steam and/or dry saturated steam produced using the combustion gas exhaust product may also be employed for the production of electrical power, thereby increasing the amount of electrical power that can be generated by the processes and apparatuses. Any wet steam produced using the combustion gas exhaust product can be separately employed in any apparatus, system and/or plant that uses wet steam in processes conducted therein, such as the food industry, the wood industry, the pulp and paper industry, the pharmaceutical industry and in ships. For example, the wet steam can be employed to drive blowers and pumps, for direct contact with products, for direct contact sterilization, in noncontact processing and to regulate temperatures for heating and air conditioning.
The present invention also generally relates to processes and apparatuses for converting hazardous materials into non-hazardous materials, to the fuels that may be employed in the processes and apparatuses of the invention (and in other processes and apparatuses), and to methods for producing these fuels.
A Confidential Invention Disclosure document entitled “Waste Hydrocarbon Combustion Gas Generator” that describes and illustrates the processes and apparatuses of the present invention was filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Mar. 17, 2003, and was assigned Disclosure Document No. 528050.
2. Background
Production of Electrical Power and Pollution
Electricity has conventionally been produced at power plants by spinning the shafts of electrical generators that are driven by various means, such as by hydroelectric dams, large diesel engines, gas turbines or steam turbines. The steam employed in the power plants has conventionally been created by burning coal, oil or natural gas, or by nuclear reactors, and turns a turbine that turns an electric generator. Electrical power generated by the power plants is transmitted through electrical power transmission lines that are part of a larger power grid.
The world is currently facing a persistent and complex energy and electrical power crisis.
In August of 2003, a lengthy blackout that occurred in eight of the Northeastern states, and in two Canadian provinces, and that is considered to be the worst blackout ever in U.S. history, caused a series of difficulties for 50 million people and entities across a large portion of the United States and Canada, including massive social and economic disruption. A huge chunk of the Northeastern electrical power grid came crashing down, providing evidence that a grid of twigs and twine cannot meet the electrical power demands of 21st century consumers, much less protect itself from terrorists who may try to damage or destroy it. In just a few minutes, a glitch in the Midwest rippled through 100 electrical power plants, plunging millions of people into darkness, and resulting in at least 3 deaths, in 10 major airports being shut down, in 700 flights being canceled nationwide and in 350,000 people being stranded on the New York City subway in the dark, with 19 trains being in underwater tunnels. More than 100 electrical power plants, including 22 nuclear power plants, in the U.S. and Canada crashed despite an electrical power structure designed by experts specifically with such a danger in mind. This blackout was the fourth catastrophic failure of the central power grid in the last decade, and shows that a single electrical power failure can ripple through the complex interconnections and delicate balance of supply and demand that govern our nation's electrical supply with disastrous results.
As a result of an energy crises in the state, in 2001 the governor of the state of California issued an emergency executive order expediting the permitting for peaker electrical power plants generating less than 300 megawatts of electrical power to a 21 day period. An executive order was also issued exempting peaker power plants from the California Environmental Quality Act. The state of California has experienced significant difficulties in supplying sufficient amounts of electrical power to its residents without blackouts and other service interruptions since that time.
The 2001 market for electric power generation, transmission and distribution totaled approximately 197.2 billion dollars. Over the past 10 years, electrical power demand has increased by about 30%, while transmission capacity has increased only half that much. As the world population increases, the demand for electricity, and for fuel that may be used to produce electricity, is projected to increase. In its December of 2000 report, the Energy Information Administration estimated that the United States will need about 393,000 megawatts of new electrical power generating capacity by the year 2020 to meet this growing demand for electricity. With the worldwide growth of energy demand, sensible energy policy requires the careful balancing of three objectives: (a) low cost; (b) minimal environmental impact; and (c) security of supply. Energy security depends upon an ability to properly manage the economics, supply and environmental consequences of the energy sources that are employed to produce electricity.
The United States currently produces electricity using several different fuels, including coal, which represents about 57 percent of the electrical supply, and nuclear energy, which represents about 20 percent of the electrical supply. The remainder of the electrical supply is provided by natural gas-fired power plants, hydroelectric dams and small amounts of renewable energy.
Solar and fuel cell technologies are currently underdeveloped, and are expensive. Hydroelectric and wind powers are disadvantageously limited in use by geographic location. The energy industry has long been seeking more environmentally friendly, efficient, safe and cost effective alternatives to coal, natural gas and nuclear energy.